Ryan Adams denies abuse accusations

US songwriter Ryan Adams has denied accusations he emotionally abused or harassed numerous women including his ex-wife, singer and actor Mandy Moore, and a 15-year-old girl.

Seven women told the New York Times that Adams "dangled career opportunities while simultaneously pursuing female artists for sex."

The newspaper said it had corroborated with family and friends accounts of Adams "subjecting women to emotional and verbal abuse, and harassment in texts and on social media."

"I am not a perfect man and I have made many mistakes. To anyone I have ever hurt, however unintentionally, I apologise deeply and unreservedly," Adams responded on Twitter.

The Times reported it had seen more than 3,000 text messages, including some allegedly sexual in nature, that Adams exchanged over nine months in 2014 with a 15-to-16-year-old girl. The teenager also said the pair conducted a video call in which Adams was naked.

Ex-wife Moore, who divorced the singer in 2016, also said Adams was psychologically abusive.

"But the picture that this article paints is upsettingly inaccurate. Some of its details are misrepresented; some are exaggerated; some are outright false. I would never have inappropriate interactions with someone I thought was underage. Period," the 44-year-old tweeted.

Adams launched his music career with the band Whiskeytown and made his solo debut in 2000 with the album "Heartbreaker." Also a songwriter and record producer, he has worked with some of the industry's big names, including John Mayer, Willie Nelson and Norah Jones.

Adams is the latest of dozens of men to be accused of inappropriate behaviour in the past 18 months as the #MeToo movement has spread beyond Hollywood and into the music industry, politics and corporate boardrooms.